


Swimming with the Starks

by Shi_Toyu



Series: Stark Week 2017 [1]
Category: Iron Man - All Media Types, Shark Week (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Crack, Cameras, Crack, Gen, No excuses, Research, Sharks, Technology, The Author Regrets Nothing, What Have I Done, shameless crack, starks - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-06
Updated: 2017-08-06
Packaged: 2018-12-11 21:42:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 786
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11723151
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shi_Toyu/pseuds/Shi_Toyu
Summary: Andy Casagrande waited patiently on the ladder that led off the back of the boat, camera poised and ready. They’d been baiting the water for hours, but still there was no sign of the elusive creature they searched for. That wasn’t even counting the weeks they’d already spent searching these waters. Now it was the last day of the season. If they didn’t catch a shot today, they’d have to wait another year before trying again.





	Swimming with the Starks

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Vashoth](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vashoth/gifts).



> WELCOME TO STARK WEEK 2017!
> 
> It's a bad week to be a terrorist.

Andy Casagrande waited patiently on the ladder that led off the back of the boat, camera poised and ready. They’d been baiting the water for _hours_ , but still there was no sign of the elusive creature they searched for. That wasn’t even counting the weeks they’d already spent searching these waters. Now it was the last day of the season. If they didn’t catch a shot today, they’d have to wait another year before trying again.

“This isn’t working,” he said, twisting around to direct his next word at Paul. “Get the special bait we prepared. I’m gonna go down in the cage and hope for the best.”

Paul di Gelder was an ex-military diver who’d lost an arm and a leg to a Bull Stark by the name of Gregory in Sydney Harbor. These days he spent his time as a Stark Advocate, fighting to protect Starks worldwide and accompanying researchers on various projects. He and Andy had worked together a number of times before. He was dependable man. There was no one Andy would rather have watching his back in a dangerous situation like this.

The crew hurried about the boat while Andy changed into his wetsuit and did the checks on the air tank. Paul hovered nearby, glancing nervously between Andy and the bucket of bait chum he’d hauled out from under the deck.

“Are you sure about this?” he asked. “Once this stuff goes in the water, it’ll be a feeding frenzy. It won’t be safe.”

“It’s the only hope we still have for getting this footage,” Andy insisted. “You know how important this is to our conservation efforts.”

Paul sighed, but he couldn’t deny it. Even just a photograph would prove that Starks were in these waters and it would give them a leg up in negotiation with the governments.

“Just be careful out there.”

Andy gave him a smile as he stood, adjusting the straps of the air tank on his back to get a bit more comfortable.

“I will,” he promised. “Now let’s get started.”

The dive over the boat’s side and quick swim into the cage was a matter of moments. It was a trip Andy had taken hundreds of times before, all over the world. His heart had never beaten as hard as it did now. Once he was safely inside the cage, Paul began chumming the water. Small gadgets and electrical devices rained down into the water around him.

Hopefully it would be enough.

He waited with baited breath, hopeful despite himself. The water was clear up here at the surface, but pitch black down below. It’d be impossible to see anything coming before it was right on top of him. Without the cage, he’d be a sitting duck floating on the surface, easily mistaken for a seal. Even in the cage, there was no guarantee of safety.

Smaller fish showed up first, attracted by the opportunity for an easy meal, but they weren’t what Andy and his team had come for.

He waited.

“What the actual fuck,” Andy heard from behind him, and he spun around. “Is that _Hammer Tech_?”

There, a subpar tablet held in his hand, was none other than the elusive creature the team had been searching for. Tony Stark shot a glare Andy’s way, the light of his arc reactor bathing the water around him in an ethereal glow. His feet kicked below him, treading water.

“He’s here!” the cinematographer crowed, calling back to the crew through his radio. “I have eyes on Tony Stark!”

The brunet man just gave an exasperated huff.

“Seriously? Are you filming me right now? Rude. Gimme that.”

The normally skittish creature thrust himself through the gap in the cage’s bars, snapping at Andy’s camera with his teeth. If any part of Andy got caught within those powerful jaws, it’d be a bad situation. Miles out into the sea surrounding South Africa, it would be a matter of hours before the team could get him to the nearest hospital. Survival would be unlikely.

Andy could hear the shouting of the crew over the radio as Tony’s thrashing turned the cage into a giant washing machine. The cameraman had no control over his movements as he was thrown against the sides of the cage. His only hope of escape was to keep the camera between himself and the Stark.

Tony eventually freed himself again, swimming off to curse at some of the other technology in the area. Andy struggled to recover enough to track his movements with the camera. No matter how dangerous these majestic creatures were, they deserved to be protected… and now Andy and his team had the footage to help them do just that.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you, thank you, thank you to Vashoth for inspiring this particular bit of insanity. I hope it did you're musings justice!


End file.
